Crespino writes, “Strom Thurmond is remembered today as one of the great American hypocrites: the firebrand segregationist who had a black daughter.” Although Thurmond had controversial views that changed, he played a key roll in benefiting American politics. It is clear from Strom Thurmond’s America that the politician was wrong about northern whites sharing the same racial views as southerners; and in the years following 1948, the issue of race would realign politics forever. The election of 1948 was considered to be the greatest election upset in America’s political history. Harry Truman represented the Democratic Party, Thomas Dewey represented the Republican Party, and Strom Thurmond represented a Segregated Party commonly known as the Dixiecrats. Each of the three men running for presidency had strong political views with a main focus on their ideals about racial discrimination. “In the biggest surprise in American presidential history,” Harry Truman ended up winning the election marking the start of America’s fight to end the racial problem in the United States. Immediately after President Truman took office, he made it clear that his main goal was to end racial segregation, especially in the southern states. He focused on the main issues including ending segregation in public …show more content…
After the law was passed, many white conservative southerners switched from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party, including Strom Thurmond. It is evident that the main reason why many southerners switched parties, was because the Civil Rights Act. Thurmond realized that the citizens he represented began to change their political views, so it was necessary for him to change in order to maintain political approval. The 1960s was an interesting and controversial time in American politics, exhibiting how the issue of race transformed the American political system